Up today: A wrap up of the 10 Best Digital and Social Media Ideas from the Missouri Valley Conference.
If you’re joining late, we began our journey with a look at the Pac-12, SEC, Big 10, Big 12, Big East, ACC, American, Atlantic 10, and WCC.
Hope you enjoy…
10. Wichita State is in the Moment
Above all, social media should bring to life the moments that matter the most to your student athletes. When you think about basketball, the NBA Draft moment is one that kids grow up dreaming of. The odds of actually being selected are incredibly small — roughly 1% of NCAA seniors are so lucky… which becomes a large reason programs like Kentucky and Duke put their messaging around getting athletes to that level. So what is a program like Wichita State to do when they have a student-athlete with a great chance of being drafted?
They immerse themselves in the moment, as you’ll see on this Instagram post.
9. Bradley’s Recruit Me Messaging
Know who your consumer is, and then put all your focus on their journey. When I visited the Bradley Braves website, I was intrigued to find the way they identify prospective student athletes from their main navigation. As you’ll note below, the Athletics menu has a drop down that includes two very important but seldom-used words: ”Recruit Me”.
Clicking in takes you to a form to identify yourself as a prospective Men’s Basketball student-athlete (here), but let’s consider the possibilities. Someone who clicks on that button is raising their hand in the hopes of being recruited. This allows the university to customize their messaging in a hyper-relevant way. They have potential to do this for all sports, not simply men’s basketball, and to allow their website to become a service in the recruiting process.
Lastly, they could take this idea and make it more prominent, more desirable. Why not make it easier for these future recruits to find you?
8. Wichita States Asks Fans For Input
The best ideas came come from anywhere… but they are most likely to come from those who care. That’s one of the best things about social media — it is full of an audience who has raised their hand (or clicked a follow button) to let you know they care. But what can you do about that?
As you’ll see in the post below from Wichita State Athletics, they are asking their passionate fan base for ideas. But what you will also see is that they are doing two other things that will make all the difference:
- They are visual. Not only does this help their message stand out from a crowded news feed but it also shows the fan base that the message is important. Wichita State crafted this message in a way that stands apart from their normal messaging.
- They give guidance. It’s one thing to ask, broadly, “what do you want to see?” It’s another thing to ask with guidance, “from gameday promotions to social media content, what would you like to see next season?” This helps fans know what they are responding to, and when they should expect to see things. Counter to what we are wired to think, sometimes specificity can make us more creative.
From special gameday promotions to social media content, what would YOU like to see next season? #WATCHUS pic.twitter.com/DsUrOLZDqt
— GoShockers (@GoShockers) June 16, 2014
7. Wichita State Tags on Instagram
As you’ll see in the post below, Wichita State leads with great imagery. But what you’ll also see is a subtle tagging of their Instagram handle on the photo. This is noteworthy for two reasons:
- They started with a premium image – a photo with quality that their fans will want to share
- They tagged their handle subtly, so that it will not deter fans from sharing
This combination will allow @GoShockers to spread farther as more fans see each post.
6. Drake’s Twitter Panorama
Inspired by the visual power of Instagram, Twitter updated their profile page design. This allows for users to have a more defining profile image to lead their page, as your image will automatically scale to 1500 pixels wide. That’s a huge amount of space for one image… and, since it sets up everything on your page, it is a huge amount of opportunity for us. When you create such a large space it becomes a billboard for your program(s).
So what do you do?
As you’ll see below (and here), Drake Athletics took this opportunity and seized it – using a panorama of their Knapp Center. This image sets the tone for the page, and for their Athletics brand. The page works for three big reasons:
- Stopping power. They lead with a performance-based point of view — the look has a high major college or even pro feel.
- Timeless. The stands are packed, but it’s not clear who’s playing or when the game is taking place. This makes it about the feeling, not about one moment.
- Aspiration can scale.. But it could be about a moment: They could take this strategy and apply consistently it to other programs, or even down to one big moment that defines a season.
5. Wichita State Delivers Content Through Their Journey
Feel what they feel.
As Coach Greg Marshall addressed his undefeated basketball team before this year’s Missouri Valley Conference Tournament, you had a sense they were living in the moment. Social Media let their fan base join in that moment. In the YouTube video below, we join the Shockers in the locker room as they reset themselves. Our vantage point is from a player’s point of view…
Feel what they feel.
After the Shockers won the MVC Tournament, we again get a player point-of-view video. But this time it’s an Instagram video from the middle of their celebration. The celebration feels close to us, even personal…
4. Wichita’s CottONCamera
Watch anyone on a trip as they take their camera or phone out to capture a picture of a friend and you will remember, in an instant, that taking pictures are incredibly fun. Yet sometimes we lose sight of that when it becomes our job. Perhaps that’s why I loved this idea from Wichita State. Let’s start with the caption that explains it all:
“What happens when Tekele Cotton steals the photographer’s equipment? Shockers get CottONCamera before today’s practice….”
Yes.
It’s fun, it’s real, and it offers value to the fan who’s following the program on Facebook.
Plus, as you’ll see below, you get a different vibe from a picture taken by a player than you get from a picture taken by a professional photographer. That’s one of those things that makes sense that I wouldn’t have even considered until after I saw this idea in practice…
3. Indiana State’s #WarriorDay
Potential.
That’s why fans love a program even when it’s not on top. It’s what coaches sell in living rooms or at donor dinners. You want everyone to see potential as achievable. Which got me thinking…. what if we could visualize potential through social media? Indiana State takes a big step in this direction through the images below, appropriately hashtagged “#warriorday”.
As you’ll see, these images follow student athletes through a day of workouts on a quest to get better. And as you’ll also see, the ideas work across all sports and programs. It’s a great way of bringing potential to the surface, and of uniting everyone from current student athletes to prospective student athletes to alumni and fans.
It also got me thinking… what if every day was warrior day? And what if players were encouraged to show this in social media?
#warriorday pic.twitter.com/hqYC2CWATn
— ISU Baseball Staff (@ISUBBschedule) September 21, 2013
#warriorday pic.twitter.com/72F6RYNfUT
— ISU Baseball Staff (@ISUBBschedule) September 21, 2013
#warriorday pic.twitter.com/A4YPD9ESsc
— ISU Baseball Staff (@ISUBBschedule) September 21, 2013
2. What’s Your State of Wichita?
It all starts with a simple question that many of us ask: why is it Wichita State? Isn’t that word misleading?
Enter opportunity.
Wichita State asked players and fans what their “state” of Wichita was through Instagram. The best Instagram videos would win autographed gear or tickets to the games behind the bench.
They kicked off the plan by leading with a fan favorite, Basketball player Ron
Baker:
Then they continued this concept across multiple sports ahead of important moments for each program.
Finally, they curated a Pinterest Board that brought all of their creative to life, together.
The concept was strong because of three key factors:
- It was simple: Fans knew what to do, and where to do so
- It built off a fun insight: This concept let fans and players respond to opposing fans asking about the “state” of Wichita.
- It was aspirational: WSU led with the right players, and they made the prizes ones that brought fans emotionally-closer to the squad
1. Indiana State Releases a Schedule on Twitter
Teams release their schedules for next season in the offseason. Sometimes it’s not a surprise as fans have cobbled it together from other teams’ releases. Other times it is a surprise, issued as a press release that is posted on a website and shared through social media.
But couldn’t it be more?
Indiana State shows us how – releasing a post about a new game every Tuesday through a concept they called “Schedule Release Tuesday.”
We will release one game each Tuesday for the rest of the summer to unveil our non-conference opponents
— Indiana State WBB (@IndianaStateWBB) July 1, 2014
First up on Schedule Release Tuesday – ISU will face Saint Louis in the home opener on Nov. 14 pic.twitter.com/S66Ki7u6uU
— Indiana State WBB (@IndianaStateWBB) July 1, 2014
The idea is great for several reasons, but I’d love to signal a few out:
- It offers value. Fans want to know who you are playing. This is value that only you (and your opponents-to-be) have and you can dictate the release timing. (Why not partner with your opponents to announce it on the same day?
- It is inherently social. Events are social moments for fans. Releasing them through social media makes it easy for fans to converse, share with others, and even RSVP.
- It drives focus. Schedules matter. Yet so often these are releases we see once and then don’t talk about until the season. This offers a longer conversation.
It also makes me wonder…
- Could social media ever dictate where a game is played? (Imagine if fans of the two teams voted for a site that they’d play?)
- Could social media ever dictate a game happening? (The 4 teams with the most engagement will get to play in this tournament?)
Stay tuned to this blog for more best practices. If you like what you see, you can also follow along on Twitter (I’m @andypawlowski) or on Facebook, here.
Up Next: The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.
Thanks for reading,
Andy
